The Editorial Page: EU, US deals connect India to world’s largest markets, open new trade vistas 10 MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2026 JOURNALISM of COURAGE KOLKATA, LATE CITY, 16 PAGES ₹6.00 (₹12 in North East states, ₹20 in Andaman) l www.indianexpress.com DA I LY F R O M : A H M E DA B A D , C H A N D I GA R H , D E L H I , J A I P U R , KO L K ATA , L U C K N O W , M U M B A I , N AG P U R , PAT N A , P U N E , VA D O DA R A PM WINDS UP 2-DAY MAlAYSIA VISIT No double standards, no compromise on terror: PM Pacts on defence, digital payments, social security for Indian workers CABINET SECRETARIAT SENDS ‘SCORECARDS’ fOR SEPT-NOV 2025 From file disposal to output, Union Secretaries now get a report card each Includes negative marks for ‘excessive’ spend on foreign visits or events, delayed payments to MSMEs Harikishan Sharma TheIndianExpresshas learnt. The scorecards assess the Secretaries and their departINAfirst,theCabinetSecretariat ments on about a dozen parhas sent “administrative score- ameters, with a total of 100 marks, and incards” to Secreclude “negative taries in the CenExPRESS marks” and “distral government, cretionarymarks”. showing the perIt is learnt that centage of marks obtained by them, based on CabinetSecretaryDrTVSomatheirindividualperformanceas nathansentthefirstsetofthese wellasthatoftheirdepartments, »CONTINUED ON PAgE 2 New Delhi, February 8 exclusive l Parametersusedinassessment PARAMETER File disposal Public grievance redressal Cabinet/CCEA notes Litigation Output/Activities annexure A of the monthly DO Expenditure on schemes and capital expenditure Timely completion of PMG projects Financial Advisor/IFD Disposal of bills by PAO/CCA Output/Activities in Annexure C of the monthly D.O. Discretionary marks by Cabinet Secretary Total NEgATIVE MARKS MAx MARKS 20 5 5 5 15 15 10 6 4 10 5 100 -12 Business as Usual By EP UNNY Asad Rehman New Delhi, February 8 Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Malaysian counterpart Anwar Ibrahim on Sunday. PTI RELATED REPORT, PAGE 7 Divya A New Delhi, February 8 EMPHASISINGTHATstrategic trust between New Delhi and Kuala Lumpur is the way to economic transformation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday asserted that India’s position on terrorism remains firm and uncompromising while underlining continued support for all efforts aimed at peace. “On terrorism, our message isclear:nodoublestandards,no compromise,” Modi said while delivering a joint press statement with his Malaysian counterpart Anwar Ibrahim in Kuala Lumpur before winding uphistwo-dayvisittoMalaysia. “In the field of security, we will strengthen cooperation in counter-terrorism,intelligence sharingandmaritimesecurity,” Modi said, adding, “We will expand defence cooperation.” Charting the way ahead for bilateral ties between the two ASEAN partners, the Prime Ministersaidthat“alongwithAI anddigitaltechnologies,wewill further our collaboration in semiconductors, health, and foodsecurity”.“TheCEOForum held today has opened up new opportunities for trade and investment.Wewillcharttheway to economic transformation throughstrategictrust,”hesaid. Thepressstatementwasdelivered soon after bilateral talks were held between the two leaders. A separate joint statement emerging out of the delegation-level talks also took a clear stand on terrorism, apart from detailing a slew of pacts signedinareaslikedefenceand security,digitalpayments,social security for Indian workers, audio-visual collaboration and tourism. The joint statement said that the two prime ministers “unequivocally and strongly” Posters of BNP leaders at a shop in the party office building in Nayapaltan, Dhaka. SHUBHAJIT ROY ‘To those who ask, ‘where are you from?’ I wish the answer could be, I’m from that room where none of us can answer that question’ JHUMPA lAHIRI lBRITAIN’S PRINCE WIllIAM will arrive in Saudi Arabia on his first visit, during which he will likely meet the country’s de facto leader and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. lCOUNTINg Of VOTES will be held for 12 Zilla Parishads and 125 Panchayat Samitis in Maharashtra. TRACK THESE AND MORE ON www.INDIANExPRESS.COM ExPRESS IN dhaka PAgE 14 »CONTINUED ON PAgE 2 Happening today Only EROs can decide scheduled to hear a batch of petitions, including one filed by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, relating to the ongoing Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in the state. Days before Bangla polls, writing on the wall: Posters of Khaleda Zia everywhere, none of Hasina PULITZER PRIZE-WINNING WRITER BENgAl S.I.R. ExERCISE lTHE SUPREME COURT is Shubhajit Roy Dhaka, February 8 AT THE Bangladesh Nationalist Party’s (BNP) office in Nayapaltan, a steady stream of visi- tors are buying memorabilia from the small store on the ground floor. Badges with the BNP's party symbol, “dhaaner sheesh”(sheafofpaddy),arethe popularchoice,amidpostersof BegumKhaledaZia,ZiaurRahman, Tarique Rahman and his family, books and T-shirts, among other items. Banners, hoardings and posters of Khaleda Zia and her son, Tarique Rahman, dot the facade of the building and the wallsoftheroadoutside,abusy four-lane in downtown Dhaka. A couple of painters and electricians are at work, painting the walls white and fixing the lights ahead of the February 12 elections, in which the BNP is expected to return to power after 20 years. “We are asking people to go out and vote, they have been deprived of this for the last 17 years,” Goyeshwar Chandra electors’ eligibility, not micro observers: EC Top I-T companies assign Labour Damini Nath Code costs, less than 3% of payroll New Delhi, February 7 WITH THE role of the “micro observers” during the Special IntensiveRevision(SIR)ofelectoral rolls in West Bengal under scrutiny, the Election Commission (EC) last week told the Supreme Court that they have been deputed only to facilitate the officials on the ground, whileElectoralRegistrationOfficers (EROs) continue to decideonadditionsanddeletions of names from the rolls. Replying to an application filed by one of the petitioners, TMC member of Parliament Dola Sen, against the SIR on January 24, the EC said in its affi- Citing rules, PMO tells LS Sectt: No questions on PM CARES, relief and defence funds E. ExPLAINED davit on February 4: “It is false to suggest that statutory powers have been vested in the micro observers.” Incidentally, on February 4, West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, who is also one of the petitioners,arguedinpersonin theSC,sayingthatherstatewas being targeted as 8,100 Central government employees had been appointed as micro observers. The EC had not appointed micro observers in the other eight states and three UnionTerritorieswheretheSIR is also underway. Initsaffidavitinresponseto Sen, the EC said it was a fact that the micro observers were »CONTINUED ON PAgE 2 Siddharth Upasani New Delhi, February 8 INDIA’S BIGGEST companies set aside more than Rs 13,000 crore in the October-December 2025 quarter to account for the impact of the new Labour Codes, according to data compiled by The Indian Express. These provisions were 3 per cent or lower as a percentage of last financial year’s employee costs for major IT companies and private banks; for airline carrierIndiGo,itwas13percent. l »CONTINUED ON PAgE 2 Highestprovisions FY25 Labour Code Labour Code Headcount staff cost provisions as % provisions of company (Rs cr) (Rs cr) of staff cost TCS L&T Infosys HDFC Bank InterGlobe Aviation 2,128 1,344 1,289 1,037 582,163 412,971 337,034 215,739 145,788 46,769 85,950 34,136 1.5% 2.9% 1.5% 3.0% 969 41,049 7,473 13.0% Note: Headcount numbers as per latest available data; L&T data includes employees and workers Source: Exchange filings, company reports »CONTINUED ON PAgE 2 THE PRIME Minister’s Office (PMO) has told the Lok Sabha Secretariat that Parliament questions and matters related to PM CARES Fund, the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund (PMNRF) and the National Defence Fund (NDF) are not admissible under rules related to the conduct of business in Lok Sabha, The Indian Express has learnt. It is learnt that on January 30, the PMO told the Lok Sabha Secretariat that questions and matters related to the three funds are not permissible under Rule 41(2) (viii) and 41(2)(xvii) of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in Lok Sabha. Under the stipulated conditionsthatgoverntherighttoask questionsintheLokSabha,Rule 41(2)(viii)statesthat“itshallnot relate to a matter which is not Funds in question PM CARES is a public charitable trust set up to raise funds for national emergencies such as Covid. PMNRF provides immediate relief to people affected by natural calamities, major accidents, riots, etc. The NDF is meant specifically for the welfare of members of the armed and paramilitary forces and support to their families. primarily the concern of the Government of India”. Rule 41(2) (xvii) states “it shall not raise matters that are under the control of bodies or persons not primarily responsible to the Government of India”. »CONTINUED ON PAgE 2 Assam BJP posts, then deletes video showing CM image firing at men wearing skullcaps Call to genocide, says Congress Sukrita Baruah Guwahati, February 8 A VIDEO posted by the Assam BJP,showinganimageofAssam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma aiming a rifle at two men in skullcaps, including one who resembles Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi, has led to backlash from across the political spectrum, prompting the party to take down the post from X. The video, uploaded on Saturday with the caption “Point blank shot”, shows an image of Sarma shooting at a photographofthetwomen,andends with an image of him dressed like a cowboy and wielding a A videograb shows an image of Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma holding a rifle gun, superimposed with phrases such as “No mercy to Bangladeshis”, “Why did you go to Pakistan?” and “Foreigner-free Assam.” Inastatement,theCongress said the video “appears to glorify the targeted, ‘pointblank’ murder of minorities”. “It is deeply abhorrent and »CONTINUED ON PAgE 2 l POLICE GOT TO KNOW OF THE DEATHS OF FOUR BY ‘CONSUMING POISON’ TWO DAYS LATER Five girls go out to play in Bihar village, only one returns — mystery continues Himanshu Harsh rashtra, having left the village just 10 days earlier for some contractlabourwork,whenthe phonecallcameonJanuary29, AGED 10 to 14, belonging to an informing him of what had impoverished Dalit settlement happened. Surroundedbyothersinthe in Haspura block of Bihar’s Aurangabad district, the five girls village, he says he was told his had little to call their own ex- 11-year-old daughter had been cept each other. Now, four are found dead in the fields along dead, the only survivor “un- with her friends. The news would available” to tell PAGE 1 reach the Haspura what happened, and Police Station only as police say they are on February 1, two probing,themystery days later — that five girls had is already fading into the dust. The father of one of them “consumedpoison”intheDalit says he was in Pangaon, Maha- village, and that only one had Haspura (Aurangabad), February 8 anchor survived and was receiving treatment. According to the Aurangabad police, when the Haspura Station House Officer and SubDivisionalPoliceOfficer,Daudnagar, reached the village to investigate, they were told the four deceased girls had been cremated on January 29 itself by the families. As the news spread, the Aurangabad police issued a press note on February 2 saying they were trying to record the statements of the parents, and that thiswasprovingdifficultasthey were not in the village. “Con- The girls belonged to an impoverished Dalit village in Aurangabad district of Bihar. HIMANSHU HARSH tinuousquestioningofvillagers and others is underway, evidenceisbeingcollected,andan FIRhasbeenregistered.Further investigation into the cause of deaths is ongoing,” police said. The Dalit village where the girlslivedisasmallclusterof25 to30houses,onlyafewofthem pucca structures, criss-crossed by clogged drains with stagnantdirtywater.Unpaved,potholed roads are the village’s only access to nearby towns. None of the homes has a toilet. Villagers say that the four-five common toilets have been unusable for the past Kolkata coupleofyears,forcingthemto relievethemselvesinthefields. There is no piped water supply either. “Most householdsdependonhandpumps,” says a villager. Almost all men are employed as farm hands or daily labourers, with work available only 10-15 days a month, fetching Rs 3,000-5,000 per person. “A family produces about 8-10 quintals per crop cycle, which we store for our consumption. We may sell 1-2 quintals to buy vegetablesandessentials,”avillager says. “Men leave early in the morning to look for work, and women, after finishing household work, go out to collect grains or to tend to cattle,” a woman says. The children, like the five girls, says another woman, are largelylefttotheirowndevices. “Those five were always together. Wherever they went, they went as a group. They spent the whole day roaming around the village and nearby areas, or playing.” While they were earlier enrolled in school, all had dropped out after Class 5 as the »CONTINUED ON PAgE 2